Who is willing to put their money on Crist?

Even before Republican Gov. Charlie Crist launched his independent bid for the U.S. Senate, he was inviting well-heeled supporters — many of them Democrats — to Miami on Sunday evening to hear what could be the most important sales pitch of his career.

More than ever, the governor viewed with anger and suspicion by many conservatives will be tapping an unusually wide pool of potential donors that includes Democrats and liberal special interest groups like trial lawyers and the teachers union.

Crist's campaign finance chairman, Brent Sembler, called Crist's fundraising ability as a nonpartisan candidate "limited." The governor has traditionally amassed vast campaign war chests with big checks, not from a grass roots, Internet-fueled network of small donations more suited to a party-free campaign.

"But I will tell you that a Democratic lawyer that I use called me unsolicited and said, 'I like what Charlie's done. I want to do a fundraiser. Are you still involved?' " the St. Petersburg developer said. "So I think there's a lot of love for Charlie out there."